THERE'S A POINT: Peter Vecsey says the Knicks should pick up Chauncey Billups' $14 million option, because the options of point guards out there to join Carmelo Anthony (above) and Amar'e Stoudemire for $8 million or less are limited.Getty Images

Carmelo Anthony predicted the Knicks can win at least 50 games next season, can be “the top team in the East” and he’d like a big say in personnel decisions this summer.

“We were 42-40 and I can say we could’ve been a 50-plus win team with some of the games we lost,” Anthony said. “Our goal is to always be in the 50-plus win range, especially when we have a whole full year together with training camp and a chance to jell. On my radar, I want to be the top team in the East next year.”

The Knicks were 14-14 in the regular season with Anthony and 14-18 including the playoffs. Though Anthony shot just 37 percent in the series, he showed in Game 2 versus Boston he can be a player that can carry a team on his back with his 42-point, 17-rebound effort. The defensive attention paid Anthony in the final two Garden games because of injuries to Amar’e Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups lessened his effectiveness.

Anthony didn’t have any of his mates step up and he called out to management he’d love to have input on their acquisitions this offseason.

“I hope it is a lot of talk, a lot of communication,” Anthony said. “I hope it is with me and Amar’e [Stoudemire] and the front office. Being the faces of the organization, if there’s pieces we need to add, why not? I’m going to be the guy they’re going to have go out and play with.”

Anthony, who has been eliminated in the first round seven of eight years, said he is getting impatient about making his first Finals. But Anthony said he has no regrets about his decision to get traded instead of entering free agency, where the Knicks could have signed him without giving up all their assets.

“That’s just something I didn’t really want to have to deal with, not knowing what the CBA will be like,” he said. “I don’t regret anything. I’ll live with that.”

Anthony, though, won’t live with another 42-40 season.

“We want to win, we don’t want to have to wait,” Anthony said. “We want to win right now. I’m 26, Amar’e is 28. We’re young, but at the same time we want to get it done right now. We want to win right now. We’ve been waiting for a long time to win. The time is now.”

Anthony has occasionally carped about Mike D’Antoni’s offense being a major adjustment but yesterday he said if the coach returns: “I’ve got his back 100 percent.

“I don’t really have a problem with his offense,” said Anthony, who averaged 26.3 points. “It was a new system, new offense for me to deal with coming here going from one style of play in Denver. It was a lot different. I had to adjust on the court with the guys we had. They were so used to playing that way.

“They had a whole season and training camp to work on it. For me to come in the middle of the season and ask us to all jell right away, it could be tough and it showed. After a while it picked up for us.”